The Bite
The Bite (properly referred to as the March of The Bite) is the northern most region of the Ashen Coast and is seen as the seat of the Duke by way of Wolfstone Castle. Represented as a region by the wolf, which pre-dated the rise of the House of Grayblade, the region is known as one of the most difficult to traverse due to the extensive forests that sprawl about the region. Regions Within the March of the Bite, several regions exist throughout. During the reign of the Cobalstants, the region was broken up by hamlets and towns by way of Baronetcies, refusing to elevate anyone not of Cobalstant blood to baron (bar the Blackmist family for protection reasons.). Under the Darkoaks, such practices continued until the eventual return of the Grayblades that saw stronger families put into place. The Baronets of the Bite, as they were referred to, were countless in number. Many families rose and fell in the same spots while land holdings changed constantly. Those who attempted to become anything more than their place were typically crushed by Cobalstant rule. The Earldom of the Howling Woods A new delegation of power brought about shortly after the Reclamation of Taenia's first movements, the Howling Woods are a sprawling Earldom that dominates the south western and central portions of the Bite. The focal point of Grayblade power, the Howling Woods are quite obviously the largest single holding in the Bite. Within the Earldom is the Barony of the Crooked Hollow under the Winbrooks. The Earldom of Am Ardùn (defunct) The Earldom of Am Ardùn (formerly the Veil) is an Earldom ruled over by the House of Avernus and is located in the northernmost section of The Bite. A newer installment by the Grayblade regime, the Veil encompasses several land holdings of Avernus power in a crescent. The region is also home to Ravendale, the headquarters of the Order of the Raven where Lady Avernus can be found as the Archmage, the Baronetcy of Ebonhollow. The Veil replaced the Viscounty of the Rise, after the Duke reordered land to avoid conflict with returning Baronets of the Bite. Though successful for a time, the disappearance of Archmage Aya Avernus left a power vacuum in the area that was never fully contained. With the region on a steady decline without centralized leadership, the Earldom was severed back into three baronies, Lunargrove, the Veil, and Shorfall. The Viscounty of Graston Named for Graston Cobal, patriarch of the Cobal family and first leader of the Cobalstant family (as he was the one who came up with the idea to merge the two), the Barony of Graston has been seen as the "fist" of the Bite for years. Making their seat in Cobal's Hold, the Graston Cobalstants were initially responsible for the maintenance of the Bite's standing army until the eventual formation of the Kingdom of the Ashen Coast caused stronger restriction. Though still seen as the militant front for the family, as the years neared more modern times, they became more and more lax. The barony was run by Lady Caridis Grayblade until the annulment of their marriage. It was later placed under Maribell Cobalstant, and after her disappearance at some point during the Legion invasion, her daughter Lucia inherited her titles. Due to being too young, she is being regented by Remegis Velenaris. Home to the Blades of Greymane as a headquarters, Graston remains a center of militant power in the region. The Viscounty of the Fang Seen as the central point of the Bite's power, the Fang Viscounty is held only by the ruling Lord Marcher, as it holds within the capitol of Bannhurst and the holdings around it, including the illustrious gold seam that flows under the Bite, and Fang Tower, the headquarters of the House of Wald and the Wolf's Guard. Dead center in the Bite, it is the smallest peerage title, though one of the most crucial. As the title is always held by the Lord Marcher of the Bite, who is now the Duke, the title is never used outside of notarization. The Barony of Lunargrove A newer installment of power, Lunargrove is located along the western shore and previously encompassed the former baronies of Shorfall and Ebonhollow. After the several powerful runestones scattered around the region became unstable with Shadow energy, the barony of Ebonhollow's central forests violently erupted and destroyed most of the landmass. Homeless, the still loyal House of Enderlain was given the former DeWitt lands of Shorfall and have merged the region with that of Ebonhollow's remnants. As such, the area is now the new home of the family in the region. When Aya Avernus disappeared, the region was demoted from a Viscounty to a Barony, and given some lands from the area of the Veil to compensate for the lack of land due to the destroyed terrain. It is lorded over by Lady Leria Woodcourt (Enderlain) and is known for a supportive Old Ways community as well as profitable ports. The Barony of Crooked Hollow The Barony of Crooked Hollow is the only barony ever assigned to a non-Cobalstant family during the House's reign and belongs to that of the House of Blackmist. Long ago delegated to them by the Cobalstants following Blackmist's rise from a Wicker Clan, the barony was only granted out of sheer necessity as a Baronet was ill suited as a title for the, at the time, large clan who had chosen to make their home within the Dark Woods. Within the Barony lays the town of Blackfall Reach, and it holds little other than various small watch posts and a few farms. With Lady Blackmist's disappearance, the barony fell to her blood cousin's leadership, Hendric Blackbriar, before being completely re-assigned to a different family after Sir Hendric abdicated. It was then granted to the House of Winbrook, a Bite borne family that had lost its lands during re-assignment of lands under the Duke. It was last led by Lady Taschanna Winbrook until her self-removal from the Duchy. The Barony of Beau's Tooth Originally one of the smallest baronet holdings, the Barony of Beau's Tooth is located on the island that shares its name. Originally the seat of the House of Cloverfield, it was later delegated to the House of Delcarn for their service to the Blades. As a result of Highlord Cedrec Delcarn's appointment as leader of the Order of the Onyx Knights, the island has become the headquarters of the order. From the town of Light's Hand, the Highlord rules over the island in the hopes of also bringing the Silver Hand to Gilneas. The island is also noted for a small population of Wildhammer Dwarves within the small town of Dun Argon on the island, where they mine moonstones to craft Moonsteel. The Barony of the Hartwood A long lived and highly defensible holding, the Hartwood is home to the House of Hartvale. Made up of the Baronetcy of the Hart and the Baronetcy of the Black Forest, the Hartwood is the culmination of a longstanding Hartvale dream, elevation. Having been done so after the rise of Brutus Hartvale to power, with the death of his traitor father Abner Hartvale, the Hartwood holds a decent amount of land and benefits from all that the two former baronetcies did. The Hartwood is currently led by Lord Brutus Hartvale, a member of the Duke's Wolf's Guard. The Barony of the Gull The Barony of the Gull is a new holding that started as a project by the Duke to begin work on unused or under utilized portions of the Bite. With the expansion of lands under the House of Cobalstant under Warden Maribell Cobalstant, the Gull was given to the Cobalstants to oversee. As a fair amount of production was already done, the Gull possesses a small port and lumber operations. The Barony of Shorfall Once the seat of the Stanton family, the Shorfall Cobalstants watched over the lands of the western Bite from the port town of Karnsburg. One of the only ports in the Bite - and surely the largest out of them all, the Barony of Shorfall has had a history of profitable business ventures and trade, only declining after the erection of the Greymane Wall. The barony was later placed under the House of DeWitt under lady Fleur DeWitt, captain of the Wolf's Guard. After Fleur's disappearance, her lands were re-delegated to Leria Woodcourt and made part of the viscounty of Lunargrove. This ultimately did not last, as the disappearance of Aya Avernus led to a power vacuum that ultimately caused Am Ardun, the earldom in which Lunargrove was located, to sever into three baronies; thus restoring Shorfall. The Barony of Ebonhollow (Destroyed) Once one of stronger Baronetcies of the Ashen Coast, the Baronetcy of Ebonhollow was located on the rocky western shores of the Bite. Under the leadership of the House of Enderlain, Ebonhollow controls a decent chuck of the western shore where the port-town of Seabreeze - which is also the capital of Ebonhollow - is built. The rest of their land consists of forest-land to the east. Recently with the installment of the Earldom of the Veil, the Enderlain's became vassals of the House of Avernus and have rose to prominence, carving a name for themselves alongside the greater lords of the Duchy. Achieving elevation under Leria Enderlain, the holding was later promoted to a Barony. The barony later exploded and became part of the newer holding of Lunargrove. The Baronetcy of the Hart (Disbanded) A long lived and highly defensible holding, the Hart is home to the House of Hartvale. Originally split into three branches, the House of Hartvale has had a history of in fighting for dominance; something owed to their Cobalstant blood. Resistant to the Duchy's rule, the Hartvales of the Hart begrudgingly joined with the duchy at large. The Hart is home to several key things to the family, namely the Veinstone Mines, where the family mines Hartstones, and The Hartreave. This was later merged with the Baronetcy of the Hart into the Barony of the Hartwood. The Baronetcy of the Black Forest (Disbanded) A small holding just north of the Hart, the Black Forest holds a sizable forest of ironwood trees, supplanted in ancient times from the Blackwald. Home to Ashwood, the former seat of the House of Ashery, it is now lorded over by the Hartvales of Ashwood, led by Brutus Hartvale. This was later merged with the Baronetcy of the Hart into the Barony of the Hartwood. Families The House of Grayblade One of the three Great Families, the ruling house of the Ashen Coast and Marcher Lords of the Bite, House Grayblade stands as leaders of the war torn people of the Ashen Coast and of Gilneas. Despite the house's short presence in the region compared to the other families, the House has exerted a large amount of ambition and strength through the two lords that have ruled under it's banner. As Marcher Lords of the Bite as well as the Duke, the Bite enjoys a special presence in the Duchy. The family's extreme immediate lands are that of the Viscounty of the Fang, where they alone hold power. They are currently led by Lord Berenal Grayblade, who rules from his seat in Wolfstone Castle within Bannhurst. The House of Enderlain: Scioned by the House of Dragonsblade Former Barons of Ebonhollow and current Lords of Lunargrove, the House of Enderlain is an ancient house that comes from the Bite, said to be as old as any other Great House. The family is known to revere the Old Ways, holding many blood ties to the Wicker clans of the Ashen Coast, even descending from the Everflame themselves. Coming into power after a successful rebellion against their Ebonhollow overlords, the Enderlain’s are one of the few Baronet families that can trace their line back to a consistent region for several generations. Currently led by Leria Woodcourt, the family has risen beyond their ancestral Baronet status to become Viscounts, overseeing the entirety of Lunargrove. The area is led by their scion Knightly house, the House of Dragonsblade, whom took over following Lady Woodcourt's retirement. As a result, while she handles limited matters of the family, her brother and Jayden Dragonsblade handle the majority of the representation of the region. The House of Cobalstant Former Dukes of the Ashen Coast, Kings of the Kingdom of the Ashen Coast and lastly Marcher Lords of the Bite, the House of Cobalstant was one of the oldest and most powerful houses in the entire kingdom at the height of their authority. Formed as a result of the merge of the two feuding families of Cobal and Stanton just as the Kingdom of Gilneas was in its formation period, the House of Cobalstant made its mark in Gilneas by claiming dominion over the Ashen Coast. Granted the land as a Duchy, the House was split into three branches, the Cobalstants of Graston who mainly held to the Cobal bloodline, the Cobalstants of Shorfall who mainly held to the Stanton bloodline, and the Cobalstants of the Fang who held to the unified pact between the families. In time, the House of Cobalstant came to refer to the main branch of Bannhurst, which became the wealthiest and most affluent branch of the family. With countless achievements and honors to their name, the family's consistent ruthless measure (something echoed in their family motto, Strength above all) has been their most notable trait. The last vestige of the family was murdered within their manor in Bannhurst during the Second War after mismanagement caused a revolt. They were replaced by the House of Grayblade, which had served the crown loyally and held a minor blood tie to the Cobalstants through a wayward member of the family who had fled from their lands to evade an arranged marriage. The Cobalstants were later raised into undeath and are currently led by Hendrick Cobalstant, who has cast his lot in with the Legion of Vengeance. A living branch of the family exists by way of the former Warden of Graston, Maribell Cobalstant. Once believed to be a simple soldier, Maribell's line was found to be a bastard one of the Cobalstants through chance. Legitimized, she revived the once Great House with the stipulation that all claims were forfeit. In exchange, she was made a full peer of Graston and retained all titles there. The House of Savastera Barons of the Gull, the House of Savastera is a newly elevated family that were granted the Gull as reward for their service to the Blades of Greymane. They are lorded over by Lady Annetuella Savastera. The House of Delcarn Barons of Beau's Tooth, the House of Delcarn has low born roots and has replaced the House of Cloverfield as lords of the island. Lorded over by Highlord Cedrec Delcarn, the House is a native Ashen Coast born family rewarded for their service to the Blades of Greymane. Highlord Delcarn has already made strives in the region, revitalizing the lands that once belonged to House Cloverfield and establishing new trade within the island. Having found a large mine of moonstone, a vital ingredient in Moonsteel, the island was raised to the status of a barony. Under Lord Cedrec, the family has also taken a leadership role in the Order of the Onyx Knights, allowing the branch of the Silver Hand to make its home within their seat of Light's Hand. They are currently led by Highlord Cedrec Delcarn. The House of Hartvale Baronets of the Hart and several other holdings, the Hartvales are one of the oldest families in the Bite. Deriving from a bastard line of the House of Cobalstant, the Hartvales embody their progenitor line's virtues and beliefs. Due to significant in fighting throughout the years, the Hartvales have been unable to ever rise past Baronet. Split into three branches, the family has now completely separated their beliefs amongst two of the three branches. The Hartvales of the Hart, the main branch led by Abner Hartvale, was resistant to the Duchy's rule but begrudgingly accepted it. Along with the knightly Hartvales of Dragon's Tooth, led by Thurman Hartvale, the two branches are opposed to the last branch of their house. The Hartvales of Ashwood, led by Abner's son Brutus Hartvale, have cast their lot in with the Duchy fully and have even accused the leaders of the two branches of murdering the House of Ashery. With having done this, Brutus has been seen as a traitor to his family. Brutus has joined the duke's Wolf's Guard and has continued to be the face of Hartvales that support the duchy. Ultimately, Abner betrayed the Duchy and was eventually slain for his treason, leading to Lord Brutus Hartvale becoming the head of the family. The House of Avernus Lords of Mistvale and earls of Am Ardùn, the northern most region of the Bite, House Avernus has been within the Ashen Coast as long as the Great Families. Ancestrally vassals of House Cobalstant, the House lorded over an obscure barony in the northern reaches, mining iron and biding their time as they were unable to oppose their over lords. When the House of Cobalstant was displaced, House Avernus quickly swore it's self to House Grayblade to gain favor, and was later able to build its self up far past where it had once been. Unfortunately, the growth was stifled when House Grayblade was nearly killed off, and they later suffered heavy losses under the Orcish invasion. Since this however, Lady Aya Avernus has continued on her family name, and under her, the family has risen to the position of an Earldom and were seen as the right hand of House Grayblade when it comes to affairs of the Bite. Ultimately, however, Lady Avernus disappeared one evening, her children gone with her. It is unknown where Aya went off to, though without a proper head of the House of Avernus, the family fell into a power vacuum. Lesser Avernus claimants still exist, but none were able to fill the position left, thus leading to the House being demoted out of conventional nobility and into courtier status. The House of Cloverfield: Defunct The House of Cloverfield was an extremely minor noble family that managed the island of Beau's Tooth. Unremarkable and rumored to have purchased nobility due to their mercantile roots, the family married into the House of Grayblade during a period where the family was just as unremarkable as they. Though it later paid off as the cousin house was able to gain minor advisory roles in the Ashen Coast, their best boon came upon the affiliated house's perceived destruction. Elevated by blood right to Marcher Lord after the apparent destruction of House Grayblade, the Cloverfields enjoyed a brief amount of power before an accident abruptly cut their joy short, killing the small family off and leaving the House of Darkoak in power. The House of Blackmist: Defunct Barons of the Crooked Hollow seated within Blackfall Reach and a deeply secluded house, House Blackmist is an enigma to most of the Ashen Coast families. Descendants of the ancient druids that once inhabited the Ashen Coast and settlers of the region, House Blackmist's blood can be traced back to both heritages of the region. Known for having established a township within the Dark Woods, the house and town remain mostly to themselves within the woods, having sworn to House Grayblade only out of desire to remain undisturbed. Due to their reclusive nature, their history is either largely uneventful or unknown and up until recently they were content to keep it that way. Under lady Karin Blackmist, the house and their lands became somewhat more proactive under the banner of the Blades, aiding in the excursion through the woods. Though they still remain very secluded and somewhat wary of the other Ashen Coast families, their cooperation has benefited the region greatly as Blackfall Reach is now treated as an important trade stop by merchants that travel through the woods. Lady Blackmist eventually disappeared without a trace, and after months of no word, was replaced by her cousin. Lord Hendric Blackbriar is a stark contrast to his cousin, who was a known practitioner of dark arts. Hendric is a devout worshipper of the Light, going as far as to adorn himself in Exarch's armor from Draenor. He later abdicated in favor of a war council position for the duke, leading to the Blackmists becoming defunct in all senses politically; replaced by the Winbrooks. The House of Winbrook: Defunct Barons of the Crooked Hollow seated within Blackfall Reach, the Winbrooks were a Bite borne noble house that were once Baronets landed in a different section of the Bite. Landed within Weston, a region just west of Graston, they lost their lands when it was annexed into the barony and converted into farmland when they had not returned in time to claim them. As a result, the lady of the house, Taschanna Winbrook, sought out to prove her self to the duchy in order to gain a new seat for her family. Eventually succeeding, the Winbrooks replaced the House of Blackmist as lords of the Crooked Hollow, a rather important province. They were led by Lady Taschanna Winbrook who departed from the Ashen Coast, thus ending their stint as lords. The House of DeWitt: Knightly House The House of DeWitt has a long and rich history that is intertwined with the House of Grayblade. Starting from the foundation of Gilneas, the DeWitts have assumed the role of servants and troops to the Grayblades, standing by them as stalwart companions and advisers through their lords' growth. Dame Fleur DeWitt last lead the House following her return, though she later disappeared. Category:Places Category:Gilneas Locations Category:Duchy of the Ashen Coast Category:The Bite